1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a photo laboratory management system, and more particularly to a photo laboratory management system that manages a photo laboratory and is provided with various functions for managing a workflow in a photo laboratory from the reception of an order, through the output of an output image (finished product) such as a photographic print, a medium (image data recording medium) on which photographic image data has been recorded, or photographic image data itself, to the delivery of the finished product to a customer, for enhancing workability and operability concerning a multifunctional digital photo printer, and for improving productivity in a digital photo print system that uses the multifunctional digital photo printer.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional analog photo printer deals with a negative film and directly performs exposure and printing on photographic paper (printing paper) using image projection light having passed through the negative film. Compared with this conventional analog photo printer, a digital photo printer is multifunctional, is capable of performing input and output in a wide variety of forms, and is capable of performing various image processing, which however requires complicated operations.
For instance, in addition to a negative film, it is possible to deal with various input sources such as a reversal film, digital image data photographed by a digital still camera (DSC) and recorded on an image data recording medium like SmartMedia™, and digital image data recorded on an image data recording medium like an FD (flexible disc), CD-R, or Photo CD™. As to an ordering method, it is possible to use a plurality of routes such as the counter of a photo laboratory (laboratory, photo studio, photographer) or a network.
On the other hand, in addition to the ordinary outputting onto the photographic paper (printing paper), there are various output forms such as the outputting onto a postcard or outputting of image data onto an image data recording medium like an FD or CD-R.
These input and output operations and various processing can be realized with a digital photo printer so that apparatuses are made more multifunctional. With such a construction, a digital photo print system using the digital photo printer also is made more multifunctional and is more complicated.
Examples of such a complicated, multifunctional digital photo print system include the “image server system and image service system” disclosed in JP 2001-243365 A, the “device management system” disclosed in JP 2001-268253 A, and the “image service system” disclosed in JP 2001-249990 A.
The various systems disclosed in these documents are capable of reducing the number of judgments to be made by a user or an operator in charge (worker in the laboratory), performing the operations from order reception to outputting with higher efficiency, providing speedy image service, and performing a maintenance work based on precise information for a plurality of digital photo printers connected via communication lines through a communication network.
In the various systems disclosed in these documents, however, when viewed from the user, the operation of the digital photo printer is complicated as a whole and it takes much time to master the operation, which was an inevitable problem because of the fact that even if the whole operation of the digital photo printer is made simpler, the number of operation screens is unavoidably increased and the operation is complicated due to the multifunctionality of the digital photo printer.
This situation gave rise to a problem that the operator at the laboratory is required to have a higher level of skill than before, which results in an increase in cost.
At an ordinary laboratory, the details of an order from a customer (instructions concerning how to satisfy customer's request) are written on an envelope for development and printing (hereinafter referred to as “DP envelope”) and this DP envelope is used when an operator sets up an apparatus (digital photo printer) to finish a product ordered by the customer. In this process, the operator must understand the meaning of the instructions written on the DP envelope and correctly set up the apparatus in order to obtain a result meeting the customer's request. The problem associated with this function is that the operator must read the instructions written on the DP envelope at each stage of order processing, which may cause errors more frequently. The errors lower productivity and incur an increase in cost due to reoperation or remaking.
The control of a workflow at a retail store for producing photographic prints ordered by the customer using an apparatus (photo printer) which can provide speedy photofinishing service (“one-hour photofinishing service”, for instance), is a manually performed process. As described above, the customer information and the details of his/her order are written on a DP envelope that is used to manage the order from the customer during processing at the laboratory. This order is dealt with in a first-in first-out manner and productivity is based on the capacity of the apparatus and the skill level of the operator at the laboratory. This manually performed workflow process has been sufficient until digital image output services, such as the printing from digital images, the writing of images onto a CD, and the uploading of images to the Internet, are introduced in addition to a conventional film processing and print order processing. The new services based on digital sources lead to a situation where a conventional workflow used at an ordinary laboratory that provides only the film developing and print processing service is collapsed by the additional services that the laboratory needs to provide but exceed the range of the conventional workflow. The new services introduced into the workflow at the laboratory may cause an operator to make errors more frequently, which results in a delay in completion of order processing due to the misjudgment of priorities in a schedule the operator of the laboratory must follow.
In view of this problem, JP 2001-281768 A discloses a “method for ordering a commodity obtained by photofinishing processing and/or service, and package and label thereof”, and provides a system for receiving and recording a photofinishing order from a customer for commodities obtained by photofinishing processing and/or service, as exemplified by a photographic print obtained by printing, reprinting or enlargement, image data recording medium like a CD on which photographic image data has been recorded, image-attached commodities like clothes or ceramics on which images have been printed, distribution of photographic image data via a communication network like the Internet.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,104,468 and JP 2000-049990 A corresponding to this US patent disclose a workflow method with which the image traffic on a network is improved and contain a guideline according to which an image signal is sent to a special image processor or output apparatus only when the network traffic must be suppressed to the minimum level.
Further, the invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,147,742 and JP 11-352600 A corresponding to this US patent relate to a photofinishing system and a method therefor, and more particularly to an automatic photofinishing system and a method of managing and processing audio data and image data.
However, the inventions disclosed in these patent documents do not suggest that schedule management and processing of an order containing an image, delivery of commodities and management of a workflow are performed based on the processing capacity of an apparatus, the construction of the apparatus, the number of operators, scheduled work hours, a current work load, and a time limit determined by a workflow adviser that issues a notification to an operator when an operation that is important in maximizing productivity is waiting for processing.
Further, in accordance with the rapidly achieved widespread use of digital still cameras (DSCs), the digitalization of services provided at photo laboratories makes rapid progress and digital photo printers (in particular, small-sized digital photo printers) come also rapidly into widespread use. Along with this situation, new services such as the printing of DSC images and the writing of photographic image data onto CD-Rs are added to service contents at the photo laboratories that have conventionally been limited to a print service only from a photographic film like a negative film, as described above. This leads to a situation where the number of kinds of services provided at the photo laboratory is nearly tripled compared with a conventional case. Consequently, productivity is lowered and an operator requires a higher level of skill due to the necessity of dealing with complicated services, which becomes a cause of an increase in overall cost. As a result, the photo laboratory may suffer from squeezed profitability.